NATO Summit triggers mass protest in Istanbul

Hundreds of demonstrators took to the streets of Istanbul on Sunday to protest against NATO ahead of the alliance's summit in Ankara, calling on Turkey to withdraw from the bloc and shut down foreign military bases in the country.

Carrying flags and banners reading, "NATO chain will be broken," "No to NATO," and "Murderer USA, get out of the Middle East," protesters accused the alliance of driving conflict rather than promoting peace.

One demonstrator, Senem Guneysu, said security measures linked to the upcoming summit reflected priorities that did not represent the public.

"For days they have placed Ankara under lockdown because NATO leaders are coming. […] We do not want NATO or its member states in this country. I came here to tell them, once again and as loudly as possible, that they are not welcome," she said.

Another protester argued that NATO had consistently used military action to advance Western interests.

"Since its founding, NATO has served one purpose: to preserve capitalism through bloodshed, bombs, oppression and exploitation," the protester asserted.

"This so-called defence alliance carries out its interventions by engineering regime change in countries that do not conform to Western imperialism, fuelling sectarian conflicts, arming militant groups, planning military coups and operating through clandestine networks, turning countries into bloodbaths," she continued.

Criticism also focused on the upcoming summit, with demonstrators claiming it would prioritise military planning instead of diplomacy.

"NATO is the war organisation of the imperialist states. They are meeting in Ankara to plan new massacres," another protester claimed.

The rally formed part of a wider wave of anti-NATO demonstrations held across Turkey in recent days, including in Ankara, ahead of the summit scheduled for July 7 and 8.